Satya

Have you ever had a massage that began with the therapist requesting feedback on pressure, but quickly devolved into you barely hanging on while saying nothing about the intensity? You probably just moved the tension around your body—from, say, your quads to your jaw—and worked against your intention in getting a massage.

Next time, commit to being honest. Your massage will benefit, as will your yoga practice and your training. This week’s focus in my yoga classes has been satya, honesty, truthfulness. We enjoyed poses that revealed the truth of what our bodies could do: standing balance poses, bow, and reclining hamstring stretches.

As athletes, we are conditioned to hang on in the face of intensity. That’s how we improve, by pushing our boundaries to expand them. In yoga (and in massage), we must do the opposite. In turn, we learn more about the truth of where our limits are and when we can push them on the course and in life.